HELPING HOLIDAYS

Volunteering can elevate a vacation to the extraordinary, offering the chance of an unforgettable experience while making a difference.

- VICTORIA BURROWS

Up in the snow-capped Tien Shan mountains, a team of researchers are tracking snow leopards, recording their pugmarks, kills and scat. Sightings of the cats themselves are rare - some estimates say there are as few as 3,500 snow leopards left in the wild, with 150 to 200 in Kyrgyzstan. They are also shy, solitary and elusive, disappearing into the environment on softly padded feet.

The team is up in the mountains to get a more concrete population estimate and assess the status and distribution of their prey species such as the Tien Shan argali and the Central Asian ibex, along with other animals such as marmots and birds. They also work with local communities and the anti-poaching patrol on educational activities.

Life isn't easy at such high altitudes, with the terrain covered reaching up to 3,800m above sea level, and expedition-style base camp conditions with accommodation in yurts and dome tents. But the tracking being done, expanding knowledge of these vulnerable creatures in support of conservation efforts, is worthy work.

While scientists run the programme, much of the daily recording is done by layperson volunteers who pay around US$3,000 (S$4,100) plus flights for two weeks up this stunning, remote region. The programme is offered by Biosphere Expeditions, an award-winning citizen science-based wildlife conservation nonprofit founded in 1999.

Biosphere Expeditions is just one organisation offering such trips to those seeking something more meaningful than typical touristy itineraries. Volunteers with the Earthwatch Institute can channel their inner Indiana Jones in helping excavate the Roman settlement of Poggio del Molino in Tuscany, digging for fossils in Zambia, searching for pink river dolphins and giant river otters in the Amazon Basin, trailing chimps in Uganda or tracking killer whales off Iceland.